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More young people move to Seoul than leave it despite housing costs, report says

Published: 25 Jun. 2025, 14:04 Updated: 25 Jun. 2025, 18:41

The photo shows Yongsan District and Mapo District as seen from Mount Namsan in central Seoul on March 9. [NEWS1]

In a city often associated with rising rents and shrinking spaces, Seoul has pulled in young adults faster than it’s lost them for the third straight year.

More residents in their 20s and 30s moved into the capital than left in 2023, according to a report released Wednesday by the Seoul Metropolitan Government. The trend continued despite a declining youth population and increasing challenges around housing affordability. Notably, 65.5 percent of young households consisted of individuals living alone — the latest signal that single-person living has become the dominant norm among the city’s youth.

The data is part of Seoul’s first-ever statistical report focused exclusively on the youth population, defined as those aged 19 to 39. The city compiled the analysis by repurposing 17 existing data sets, including the Seoul Survey, resident registration data, and Statistics Korea figures.

Seoul’s youth population totaled 2.86 million in 2023, or 30.5 percent of the city's total population, according to the analysis. This figure is down from 3.18 million in 2016.

Despite the overall decline, net inflow of young residents to Seoul remained positive for a third straight year, with 31,551 in 2022, 27,704 in 2023, and 15,420 in 2024. While the net inflow has decreased each year, the trend has consistently remained in the black.

A job seeker waits for a consultation session in front of a board displaying notices at an employment center in Mapo District, western Seoul. [YONHAP]

In 2023 alone, approximately 235,000 young people left Seoul for other regions. The top reasons for leaving were family with 34.9 percent, work with 28.5 percent and housing with 20.8 percent. In contrast, the approximately 262,000 young people who moved into Seoul cited work with 46.4 percent, family with 18.7 percent and education with 15.3 percent as their primary motivations.

As of 2022, the number of young households had increased by 13.7 percent from 2016 to 1.2 million, accounting for 29.3 percent of Seoul's 4.09 million total households. The proportion of single-person young households rose from 51.3 percent in 2016 to 64.5 percent in 2022. Among them, 70.6 percent of young women lived alone, compared to 59.1 percent of young men, according to the city.

The share of apartment dwellings among young heads of household dropped from 30 percent in 2016 to 26.8 percent in 2022, while the proportion living in detached houses also fell from 33.3 percent to 28.3 percent. Conversely, non-residential housing such as officetels increased from 11.8 percent to 18.5 percent.

Mangwon Market in Mapo District, western Seoul, is bustling with shoppers on the afternoon of June 19. [NEWS1]

In 2023, about 2.08 million young people were part of Seoul’s economically active population, with roughly 1.98 million employed. Among those employed, 58 percent worked for incorporated companies, and 39.9 percent were employed at firms with 300 or more staff.

The full youth statistics report is available on the city’s open data portal, Seoul Open Data Plaza.

“With this data covering all aspects of young people’s lives — from housing and employment to health — we will refine and promote policies and programs that genuinely address the needs of today’s youth,” said Kang Ok-hyun, general director of the Digital City Bureau.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY LEE SOO-KI [[email protected]]